Coal-handling apparatus



I. H. D. PETERSEN.

COAL HANDLING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. I2, 1918.

Patented Apr. 19, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

'-1. H. D. PETERSEN.

CDAL HANDLING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED AUGJZ, 1918.

1,375,105. Patented Apr. 19, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

J. H. D. F'ETERSENt COAL HANDLING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED Aus. I2, I9Is.

3 SHEETS-SHEETS.

3 .25m/mo? J .feier/Sem MW UNITED STATES PATENT oFElcE.

JOHN H. I). PETERSEN, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO LINK-BELT COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION 0F ILLINOIS.

v`,COAL-HANDLING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aprg19, 1921.

`.Application led August 12, 1918. Serial No. 249,468.

To all whom it may concer/n.' y

Be it known that I, JOHN H. D. -Pnfrnnsnm a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and Auseful Improvement in Coal-'Handling f paratus, of which the following is a speci Ythereto and returningV it to the distribution speaking, is to effect this result by the least Apossible amount of 'permanent machinery point when desired, and my ob]- ect, generally or apparatus.

The operation of my invention is further described in a process application copending, Number 249,467. y

There are several minor objects and portions of the apparatus which have particular functions hereafter to be explained.

The invention is illustrated more or less diagramatically inthe accompanying drawings wherein Figure l is a diagrammatic plan view of a plant illustrative of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a portion of the apparatus;

Fig. 3 is a detailed side elevation looking in the direction of arrow 3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a detailed cross-section of a portion of the apparatus.v

Like parts are indicated by vthe same letter in all the figures.

A is a vdiagrammatic illustration of the distribution plant. A1 is a conveyer preferably a belt conveyer leading therefrom.l A2 is a hollow tower over which the conveyer A1 travels; A3 a head pulley over which the `conveyer runs; A? a chute of any desired vlength'rinto which lthe' lconveyer discharges;

A5 is amovable crane having an arm'AG from the outer end ,of whichis operatively 'suspended the conveyer buckety A7 adapted to operate on the pile of material A? and A9 is the railroad track on'which'the crane A5 may travel. All these partsv are diagrammatica'lly illustrated. f Y. j B is'a short,fapproxf1mately horizontally disposed conveyerunear the bottom ofthe hollow tower A2 preferably in a side recess -associated therewith and underneath the opening at B1 which is preferably provided with inclosing walls set near the angle of repose of the material to bey dealt with.v B2 B2 are the buckets of a conveyer whichfis adaptedl to operate vertically in the hollow tower and B3 is the chute capable of being raised and lowered and adapted to discharge in its lower position onto the'conveyer belt A1. B4 is a dotted line indicating the surface of the pile of coal over the opening` B1,

and B5 is a dotted line to yindicate the position of the surface of the coal or other material when the conveyer B has been operated so as to draw off all the material lyingVIV above the opening B1.

It will be obvious as Vwe proceed with the discussion of the use and operation of these several parts that they vmay be greatly unequal accumulation of material due to seasonal demands. Thus, there maybe in the winter a very considerable accumulation of coal'not suitable for the winter trade but altered and changed and some omitted and y suitable for the summer trade andthis coal must either be treated so as to be fit for the season in4 which it is producedv or be stored. An object of this invention is to provide 'convenient means whereby thatk storage'may 'be effected by a given apparatus which `can then when desired be reversed in its operation to return such storage coal or materials Vto the distribution center.v

able coal being steadily( stored at a conveni- Y ent point adjacent to the distribution point. When the time has arrived for the use of such coal, it should be returned to the distribution point for Whatever treatment may there be required and then' for distribution in the usual way. This is accomplished in `posed of coal. Athe crane can easilyy drop itsload and the material passes down through the aperture vB1 onto the belt B.

-from the coal pile atthe foot of the hollow tower the coal which is then taken up by the buckets of the vertical conveyer, carried to and discharged along the reversed belt conveyer and by it carried back to the distribution house.

Meantime, the crane is operated to pick the material from the pile about thel tracks .A9 and drop it over the .aperture B1. This operation is facilitated by the fact that the coal has been drawn away from the center of the plileA8 as indicated by the dotted line in ig 4 so as to leave a large up-Y wardly opening funnel whose walls are com ln the top of this funnel In this waythe coal is compelled to form its own unloading chute or funnel and to dispense with any hopperv with inclined bottom walls. Of course this vopening could be placed at a considerable distance from the hollow towerV if desired so as to give a more uniform or symmetrical coal pile and funnel opening but what is here illustrated is suflicient for the purpose. The arrange-V ment of the belt conveyer, vertical conveyer and associated parts is such that the material is first carriedpto the bottom of the tower and then by reversing the belt and yoperating the vertical conveyer, can be carried back over the same route to the distribution point. Y

I claim l 1. An `apparatus for handling material comprising a conveyer adapted to carry ma-V terial in either-direction between a distribution point and an intermediate point, a

`second conveyer adapted to carry such material in either direction between the intermediate point and a storage point and a.

third conveyer adapted to carry the material from the intermediate point to the adjacent end of the first conveyer.

2. An apparatus for handling material comprising a substantially horizontally disposed belt conveyer adapted to carry mate- Vrial in either direction between the distribu terial in either direction between a distribution point and an intermediate point, a second crane-and-bucket conveyer adapted toV carry such material in eitherdirection between the intermediate point and the storage point and a third conveyer adapted to carry the material from theintermediate point to the adjacent end of the first mentioned conveyer. o

l. An apparatus for .handling material comprising a conveyer adapted to carry. material in either direction between a distribution point and an intermediate point, a-seeond conveyer` adapted to carry such material in either direction between the intermediate point and a storage point and a thirdsubstantially vertically acting conveyer adapted to carry the material from the interme- Ydiate point tothe adjacent end ofthe iirst conve er. Y c

5. n apparatus for handling material comprising a conveyer adapted to carry material ineither direction between a. distribution point and an intermediate point, a second conveyer adaptedto carry such material in either direction between the intermediate point and a storage point and athird substantially vertically acting conveyer adapted to carry the material'from the intermediate point to the adjacent end of the first conveyer such third conveyer contained in a hollow tower. v

6. A n apparatus for handling material comprising a conveyer adapted to carry material in either direction between a distribution point and an intermediate point, a second conveyer adapted to carry suchmaterial in either direction between the intermediate point and a storage point and a third substantially vertically actin adapted to carry the material rom the in* termediate point to the adjacent end of the first conveyer such third conveyer contained in a hollow tower, the first Amentioned conveyer discharging near `thetop offsaidhollow tower and the third mentioned conveyer receiving near the bottom of such tower.

7. An apparatus for handling material intermittently in opposite directions between two points comprising a-reversible conveyer extending between the two points and a re versible Vintermittently operating conveyer atl one end of such reversible conveyer togethertwith an intermittently operatedelevator adapted to connect said reversible and said intermittently operating conveyer.

'Y 8. An apparatus for handling-material intermittentlyin opposite directions between two points comprising a: conveyer extending-between two points'` and adaptedto deposit the material at one. endwith a vertically acting intermittently moving conveyer .adapted to pick the material up and deposit it yon such end of said firstconveyer and a conveyer adapted intermittently to receive conveyer' llOl material from the irst conveyer and deliver Vit to the second.

9. A coal handling apparatus .comprising a horizontal conveyer, a hollow tower supporting the discharge end thereof above the ground level, ymeans lfor supplying coal to the conveyer for operating the conveyer, means for piling the coal discharged from the end of the conveyerV on the ground about the hollowtower, means for picking up the coal so deposited and depositing it in a storage pile, means for returning the coal from the storage pile and depositing it on the ground about the hollow tower, means for raising the coal so deposited to the top of the hollow tower and discharging it upon` the horizontal conveyer and means for moving the conveyer in the opposite direction-to carry away such coal. c 10. A ycoal handling apparatus, comprising a'hollow tower, an elevator therein, a conveyer having one end adjacent the hollow tower, means for discharging coal from said' conveyer and depositing it on the ground about the hollow tower and means for discharging coal from the elevator onto such conveyer, means for changing the direction of operation of the conveyer and means for causing the iow of coal from the pile aroundfthe base of the hollow tower to the elevator.

11. A coal handling apparatus comprising a hollow tower, an elevator therein, a conveyer communicating with the top thereof, means for piling coal about the base of the hollowtower on the ground, means interposed between the base of the pile and the elevator whereby the coal sopiled may be fed to the elevator'and means for operating the conveyer either to withdraw coal fed to it by the elevator or to discharge coal across the hollow tower onto the ground adjacent the base thereof.

12. A coal handling Vapparatus comprising a hollow tower, an elevator therein, a conveyer communicating with the top thereof, means for piling coal about the base of the hollow tower on the ground, means infed to the elevator and means for operating the conveyer either to withdraw coal fed to it by theelevator or to discharge coal across the hollow tower onto the ground adjacent the base thereof, means for selectively removing the coal from the pile at the base of the hollow tower and placing it in a storage pile or moving coal from the storage pile and piling it up about the base of the hollow tower.

13. A coal handling apparatus comprising a coal elevator, a conveyer adapted to receive coal therefrom, means for pilingthe coal up about the base of the elevator, a chute whereby coal is withdrawn from the base of the coal pile and discharged into the conveyer.

14. A coal handling apparatus comprising a coal elevator, a conveyer adapted to receive jcoal therefrom, means for piling the; coal up about the base of the elevator, a. chute whereby coal is withdrawn from the base of the coal pile and discharged into the conveyer the chute being arranged so that the coal as it is piled about the base of the elevator forms a cone hopper and guides the coal added to the pile downwardly into the gravity chute.

15. A coal handling apparatus comprising a hollow tower, material elevating means therein, means for piling material about the tower, means for passing such material directly to the elevating means, a reversible conveyer adapted eitherV to feed material about the tower or to convey away the material liftedV by the elevator therein. 16. An apparatus for handling material intermittently in opposite directions between two points comprising a reversible conveyer extending between the two points and a reversible intermittently operating conveyer at one end of such reversiblev conveyer, together with an intermittently operating conveying means adapted to connect said two conveyers.

In testimony whereof, I afliX my signaturein the presence of two witnesses this 9th day of Au st 1918.

' J HN H. D. PETERSEN Witnesses:

L. D. MEYER,

L. INGRAHAM. 

